30th of August, 2008
Brooklyn and Janet are 42, Michael is 50

Janet: I woke up with a pounding headache.

Considering I haven't slept so much, I decided to go make myself some coffee.

As I passed Michael's and Brooke's master bedroom, I heard someone cough helplessly.

I walked into the room, surprised to see my best friend in their bed.

Tissues were all around her, covering the bed almost entirely.

"What happened to you?" I asked and walked in farther.

"I have a cold." she sniffled.

"You look awful."

"Thanks, Jan."

"Anytime," I smiled. "Do you need something? A cup of hot tea, maybe?"

"You're smiling. That's goo-" Brooklyn started saying, but another cough attack stopped her.

"I'll go get that tea now." I told her.

"Thanks."

When I went into the kitchen, I met Ronda. She greeted me nicely, asking if I wanted anything to eat.

"I'll just finish making this chicken soup for Mrs. Jackson." she said.

"That's okay, I don't want anything. But I will take that up for her."

She nodded, and poured a bowl full of hot soup once it was ready.

When I climbed back upstairs, Michael was in their bathroom, rubbing Brooke's back as she threw up.

I put the bowl down, sighing, "I guess you won't be wanting this."

She shook her head violently before holding onto the toilet again.

"It's been like this all night," Michael told me and then turned to my best friend. "Are you sure you don't want to see a doctor?"

"I told you, I probably have food poisoning. I think I just need to sleep it off." she murmured.

She went back to the room after brushing her teeth.

"Did you get any sleep, Dunk?" my brother asked.

"Kinda. It was a rocky night." I answered.

"I'm sorry. Is there anything I can do to make it better?"

"No, it's fine. I'll go see where my girls are. You need to take care of your sick wife."

I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, then hurried to find my three daughters.

~

Michael: "I have some things to do, are you sure you'll be okay on your own?" I asked Brooke.

"Yeah, Jan's here, and I plan on sleeping, either way," she answered. "Leave me a bucket and go-"

She stopped talking when she started coughing again.

"Get some sleep." I placed a kiss on her forehead that got hotter and hotter with each hour.

I tucked her in, so she wouldn't be cold.

She was coughing when I skipped down the stairs, making me sigh. I was pretty worried about her, but I believed her when she said it was probably just a cold.

"Bye, kids." I smiled at my four children, and Janet's daughters.

"Bye, daddy. Have fun." Kamron wrapped his arms around me.

Steve was already waiting for me in front of the house, and we drove off.

~

I banged loudly on Janet's house door as I waited for Brandon to open it.

"What?!" he yelled.

I knew him well enough to realize he's been drinking.

The door opened, revealing him. He was a mess. His hair was all over the place and held a bottle of beer.

"You seriously drank?" I asked, a bit grossed out.

"What do you expect me to do? You took my wife and daughters away from me." he rolled his eyes.

"Move." I ordered.

Quickly, I slipped through the gap between him and the door.

"What are you doing here?" Brandon mumbled.

"I came to take a few things for Janet and the girls. Jaliyah asked for her teddy bear, and all of them need their clothes."

"Why would you take their clothes?"

"They're not coming back." I told him.

"Yeah, they are. They have to, they all love me. I need my girls."

"No, they're not," I breathed in. "You disrespected her. You broke her trust. She loves you, Brandon, but you chose to betray her! She's not coming back, and neither are the girls."

I gave him a slight push, making my way upstairs.

"Hey, man, who the fuck do you think you are?! You're acting all saint like, but it's not like you never cheated on Brooke. Should I remind you the whole deal with Lisa Marie Presley?"

"But I didn't cheat. Not once did I have sex with Lisa. So don't try to make this about me when you're the one who fucked up." I turned to him.

He looked furious. Honestly, I didn't care. Brandon hurt my little sister, and that is not okay with me.

Just as I turned back to go upstairs, I noticed his fist in the corner of my eye.

Luckily, I dodged it. Brandon was a big guy, I could never physically win this, so avoiding it seemed like the right thing to do.

"I seriously am not looking for a fight, Brandon. I'm just here to get things for my sister." I said calmly.

I ran up, knowing he was too drunk to try and go after me.

Once I had everything I thought Janet and her girls needed, I came back downstairs.

I heard silent crying coming from the living room. I sighed, following the voice.

My brother-in-law looked up at me with tears in his eyes.

"I guess it means I'm fired, huh?" he hurried to look away.

"Yes, I'm sorry. Janet asked me to fire you... I would've done it myself, anyways..."

He nodded, "I understand. Just please, try to convince her to let me see my girls once in a while... I couldn't live without them."

"I promise I'll try."

I felt his pain. My kids were my biggest joy.

"Thanks, Mike."

With that, I left.

~

Brooklyn: No matter how much I tried, I couldn't sleep.

The kids were playing in the pool, and they were making noise. A lot of it.

I groaned as I felt a sneeze come.

I did not understand how I got this sick over night. I was just fine yesterday.

"Babe?" I heard Michael. The door opened a bit, the light coming from the hall blinding me.

"I can't sleep." I said.

"Aww, my poor baby. Come on, I'll cuddle you to sleep." he cooed, closing the door.

"Where were you?" I asked.

"I went to see Brandon. Don't worry, nothing happened." he answered as he got into bed.

I instantly placed myself close to his warm chest. I was so cold.

"I'll give you a nice, hot, bath when you wake up." he promised, kissing my head.

~

When I woke up, there was a cup of tea waiting for me on the nightstand.

I saw the note Michael left. I read it, a grin forming on my face.

'Good morning, my love. I hope you feel better.
Come downstairs; the kids and I are waiting for you.'

I was feeling much better, for sure. I gained some powers back.

After washing my face, I wrapped myself in a blanket and took the cup of tea. Slowly, I walked down the stairs to find my entire family playing in the living room.

The kids' heads were soaked wet, probably because they just got out of the pool.

"Mommy!" Blanket chirped.

"Hey, baby boy." I smiled.

His black hair was done in a ponytail. I loved it that way, because I could see his face that matched Michael's. Usually his hair would hide his beautiful face.

"How are you, mommy?"

"I'm better, honey."

"Great! So you can play with us!"

"Not really, your mother still needs her rest." Michael said.

Blanket scoffed, "But daddy-"

"He's right, Blanket. And don't come so close to me, okay? This could be contagious." I told him.

He sighed and went back to playing with Jaliyah and Ebony.

I took a seat on the couch, sipping on my tea.

Michael groaned as he stood up from the floor.

Prince tried too hide his laughter, but failed.

"What are you laughing about?" my husband asked him.

"You," he snickered. "You're so old, dad."

Michael shot him a death glare, and still, our son wouldn't stop laughing.

He turned to me. "Let's take you up for that bath I promised earlier. I'll just call the nanny-"

"Dad, we're not kids anymore. We don't need a nanny." Prince but him off.

"Yes, you do. Especially you, young man."

Prince rolled his eyes at his father.

"Prince Michael Jackson, go up to your room." I said sternly.

"But I didn't do anything!" he protested.

"Now."

He unwillingly did as I said.

Michael helped me up as soon as he disappeared. "Go upstairs, I'll give Louise a call."

"It's cool, uncle Mike, I can look after them." Katie told us.

"Alright. Thanks, Kate. Just remember, you're in charge, and I expect you to act like it." he crossed his arms.

Kate nodded and he carefully helped me walk to our bedroom.

~

Prince: A knock on the door made me pause my video game.

Katie slowly opened it, making me groan.

"What do you want?"

"Can't I spend time with my favorite cousin?"

"Yeah, right," I snorted. "You don't even like me, Kate."

"Well, I don't have anything better to do. Seriously, I love your parents and all, and I loved this place, but I want to go home." she said.

"I eavesdropped on dad and auntie Janet last night. She said your dad cheated on her or something. So I doubt you'll be getting home any time soon."

I glanced at her to see her reaction. She looked so guilty.

"You know something!"

"Dad told me he doesn't love mom anymore," she said, looking away. "And that he's been with Veronica for six months now."

"You are so in trouble..." I chuckled and went back to my video game.

"I already feel bad enough, don't make me feel worse."

"Your mom is in her room, crying, all day. How can you not feel worse?"

Kate rolled her eyes, "I actually don't mind my parents getting divorced. Imagine that... Two houses, two rooms... Double the fun. You know, it always felt like they got married because they had to, not because they wanted to. You know that I never heard them say 'I love you' to each other?"

"I don't think your mom would be crying all the time if she didn't love your dad." I said.

"I guess." she shrugged.

She sat down at the edge of my bed.

"Katie, I need help!" Blanket yelled.

"I better go. Uncle Mike put me in charge." my cousin sighed deeply.

"He's such a baby," I commented, a little annoyed with my youngest brother. "Mom and dad are always giving him and Kammy all the attention, while I'm always the one to blame. And don't get me started on Paris. She's being spoiled because she's the only girl in the family."

"That's what it is being the oldest. Deal with it, you were born first. They always blame you, no matter what. Take it from a professional."

She left my bedroom and I went back to the game I was so deeply in.

~

Brooklyn: Once I leaned against Michael in the hot bath he prepared, I felt even better.

Jesus, I hate being sick.

"You are gonna be so sick. This is highly contagious, babe." I said.

"So I'll be sick for a few days. It's not like I have anything important to do." he rubbed my back.

I sneezed, jumping forward and spraying my saliva everywhere. It was followed by a few more sneezes, and once it ended, I was pulled back by my husband.

"Just relax, baby... Try not thinking about this cold." he whispered while running his long fingers across my shoulders.

"My nose is stuffed, how can I not think about it?" I sighed.

"Shh..."

I put my head on his shoulder, enjoying a few minutes of peace.

Loud game sound effects were heard through our bathroom wall, where Prince's room was, but I decided to ignore them.

"Can you hear that, Brooke?" Michael questioned. "I told you we should've never given him a TV in his room."

"He asked for that for his birthday, Michael. What were you gonna say, 'no'?"

He stayed quiet.

I smirked and closed my eyes again.

I started drifting off pretty quickly. I almost fell asleep, until I heard my phone go off in the bedroom.

How can I relax like this?

"Where do you think you're going?" Michael pulled on my hand as I got out of the bathtub.

"I won't be able to relax this way. And I need to answer my phone." I told him, putting a towel around me.

Before he could say anything, I ran out of the bathroom.

I saw Beyoncé's name on the screen, so I answered.

"Hey, Brooklyn! I just called to see how you're doing... I got really worried when Michael called in the morning." she said.

"I'm a bit better, thanks, honey. How is your day so far? Did you spend it doing nothing?" I smiled.

"Not really," she mumbled. "I've been trying to come up with some new songs, but nothing seems to come out."

"Maybe you need to let it flow. Michael always says never get in the way of the music."

Just then, Michael appeared behind me, wrapping his strong arms around my waist.

"Maybe. I just feel like it's not going anywhere..." she went on, but I couldn't listen to her since Michael's hands started making their way down.

"You seriously need to relax, baby..." Michael whispered seductively in my ear.

I slapped his hands away when he was letting himself get too down there.

"Oh, come on..." he slid his hand underneath my towel.

"Beyoncé, I'll you back." I said into my phone.

"Okay. Get better soon." she hung up.

I turned to Michael who had a smirk on his face. Only now I noticed he was naked.

"You're unbearable. Get dressed." I ordered.

"Not until you go back into that bathtub."

I sighed, being led by him back to the bathroom.

~

Janet: "Mom?" Kate knocked on my door.

"Hi, baby," I smiled, wiping my fresh tears. "How's your day so far?"

"Kinda boring, I've been babysitting everyone until an hour ago... Mom, I have something to tell you." she said and stood awkwardly in the doorway.

"Of course, come here." I patted the empty part of my bed.

She hesitatingly took a seat.

"I, uh..." she muttered.

"Speak up, Katie."

My daughter sighed, "I... Well, I kind of knew about dad cheating."

"You what?" I blinked.

"He- he doesn't love you anymore, mom. He's been in a relationship for over six months with Veronica. I even met her once."

"Oh, so the slut has a name?"

"Mom, don't do this..."

I got up, staring down at her. The tears were just dreading to spill out of her eyes.

She thinks crying would get her out of it this easily?!

"How could you keep that kind of thing to yourself?!" I screamed. "This is our marriage were talking about, this is your parents! Why would you hide this from me? Don't you want us together?"

"No." Kate muffled her answer.

"What?"

"No. I don't mom," she rolled her eyes. "You think I don't know why you got married in the first place? You never loved each other. It was only because of me. Just because you got knocked up."

Her words stung. I never knew she felt that way.

"But I do love your dad. I married him because I love him." I told her.

"You love the fact that he gave you children. That's it. You don't love him, just like he doesn't love you." Kate snapped.

"Get out of here, Kate Jo Knight. I don't want to see you right now."

I watched her leave, then slid down the door, pulling my knees to my chest.

My own daughter betrayed me. How was I so blind? How did I let this get so far?

~

OMG you guys! I'm going to see Janet in April!!! AHHH I'M SO FREAKING EXCITED!!

~ShoamEmily